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The following Apple's announcement of increased privacy protections for both the Safari browser and software in general, Wired reviewed these changes briefly, and also highlighted improvements in Chrome and Firefox browsers - possibly IT- the giant was inspired precisely by their experience when he thought about innovations in his browser.
Apple has revealed what changes will come with the new macOS Big Sur operating system this year. Along with the visual redesign, the introduction of the Control Center and the update of messages, the built-in Safari browser gets new and improved privacy features to keep your data safe.
However, you don't have to wait for macOS Big Sur to get these features in Safari: Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome have similar features, or can get them through a third-party extension.
The browser already warns you about using passwords that are easily guessed or that you have used before (assuming they are stored in the Safari password locker). The next version will tell you if your email address, username or password has been compromised, and therefore it makes sense to urgently take action and change your password.
A new privacy report button is added to the toolbar - you can click it to see which trackers Safari is blocking, constantly trying to stop advertisers and businesses from tracking you online. Safari is particularly good at resisting fingerprints when various characteristics of your device, such as screen resolution and operating system, are used to identify you.
This same privacy report will be displayed on your browser homepage, which should better show you which sites are most aggressively trying to track you and show you the work that Safari is doing in the background. Safari in macOS Big Sur also greatly increases extension support (Safari already has extensions, but there are very few of them yet).
New developer tools will make it easier to port add-ons from Chrome and Firefox, and Safari will provide users with a set of controls to restrict browser data and other information that extensions can access.
You can already get some tracking data about the site by clicking the icon to the left of the URL in Chrome's address bar (the icon will be either a padlock or an information bubble).
To get even more tracking data and selectively block it in Safari style, you can use an extension like uBlock Origin : one click shows you how many trackers are active on the page and which ones have been stopped by uBlock Origin.
In addition to stopping tracking across multiple sites, uBlock Origin suppresses aggressive ads and protects against embedded malware sites. A similar tool for Chrome that you can try is Disconnect. Again, one click blocks tracking technologies, unwanted ads and social plugins like those used by Facebook to see what you are doing when you are offline or near it.
Individual trackers and sites in general can be granted permission to operate without the restrictions imposed by uBlock Origin and Disconnect, which can be used for sites with responsible advertising that you want to support. As an added bonus, tracking and blocking should also mean a faster in-browser browsing experience.
Managing extensions in Chrome is not that easy, but there are options: select "More Tools", then "Extensions" from the Chrome menu, then "Details" next to any extension. The next page shows you the permissions the add-on has and allows you to set when and how the utility can read your browsing data: on all sites (wherever you go, no questions asked), on certain sites (only on sites that you specifically enumerate) or by click (permission is always asked when access is required).
Click on the little purple shield icon to the left of the address bar on any site to see what Firefox has blocked, including ad trackers, social media plugins, attempts to fingerprint your device, and more. Firefox will allow some plugins to work if blocking them seriously disrupts the site's functionality. Then you can choose whether to continue using the site or find an alternative. To open a report on how these measures have worked over time, open the Firefox main menu and select Privacy Shield.
If you open Personal Preferences and then Privacy & Security from the Firefox menu, you can choose how to apply advanced tracking protection measures.
There are three different operating modes available - standard, strict and custom. You can also customize the blocking level for specific sites. Enhanced Tracking Protection can also be turned off for sites you trust. All of these features are built right into Firefox, and perhaps this is where Apple got some of the inspiration for Safari. Lots of third party extensions are also available if you want to go even further.
uBlock Origin and Disconnect are available for both Firefox and Chrome and work the same way: after a single click on the browser toolbar, you can see which ads and trackers are being blocked.
In order to keep track of which extensions are allowed in Firefox and for what purpose, select "Add-ons" and then "Extensions" from the program menu. Click on the three dots next to any extension to see the data and features of the browser that it has access to. Now you cannot change this, although you can block the launch in private browser windows. If an extension uses a permission that you don't like, you will have to remove it.
Apple has revealed what changes will come with the new macOS Big Sur operating system this year. Along with the visual redesign, the introduction of the Control Center and the update of messages, the built-in Safari browser gets new and improved privacy features to keep your data safe.
However, you don't have to wait for macOS Big Sur to get these features in Safari: Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome have similar features, or can get them through a third-party extension.
Safari changes
Privacy and data protection are already high priorities for Safari, but macOS Big Sur has gone even further to protect you from online surveillance. Some of the existing features are becoming more prominent, Safari also includes more extensions, taking care of user safety as much as it can.The browser already warns you about using passwords that are easily guessed or that you have used before (assuming they are stored in the Safari password locker). The next version will tell you if your email address, username or password has been compromised, and therefore it makes sense to urgently take action and change your password.
A new privacy report button is added to the toolbar - you can click it to see which trackers Safari is blocking, constantly trying to stop advertisers and businesses from tracking you online. Safari is particularly good at resisting fingerprints when various characteristics of your device, such as screen resolution and operating system, are used to identify you.
This same privacy report will be displayed on your browser homepage, which should better show you which sites are most aggressively trying to track you and show you the work that Safari is doing in the background. Safari in macOS Big Sur also greatly increases extension support (Safari already has extensions, but there are very few of them yet).
New developer tools will make it easier to port add-ons from Chrome and Firefox, and Safari will provide users with a set of controls to restrict browser data and other information that extensions can access.
Added features in Chrome
Google already checks the passwords it stores for you against a database of credential leaks (in addition to warning about duplicates and passwords that can be easily guessed) - in fact, this is a function of the Google and Chrome account. In the Chrome settings panel, click the Passwords button and then Check Passwords to start checking.You can already get some tracking data about the site by clicking the icon to the left of the URL in Chrome's address bar (the icon will be either a padlock or an information bubble).
To get even more tracking data and selectively block it in Safari style, you can use an extension like uBlock Origin : one click shows you how many trackers are active on the page and which ones have been stopped by uBlock Origin.
In addition to stopping tracking across multiple sites, uBlock Origin suppresses aggressive ads and protects against embedded malware sites. A similar tool for Chrome that you can try is Disconnect. Again, one click blocks tracking technologies, unwanted ads and social plugins like those used by Facebook to see what you are doing when you are offline or near it.
Individual trackers and sites in general can be granted permission to operate without the restrictions imposed by uBlock Origin and Disconnect, which can be used for sites with responsible advertising that you want to support. As an added bonus, tracking and blocking should also mean a faster in-browser browsing experience.
Managing extensions in Chrome is not that easy, but there are options: select "More Tools", then "Extensions" from the Chrome menu, then "Details" next to any extension. The next page shows you the permissions the add-on has and allows you to set when and how the utility can read your browsing data: on all sites (wherever you go, no questions asked), on certain sites (only on sites that you specifically enumerate) or by click (permission is always asked when access is required).
Features added to Firefox
Firefox already includes a host of privacy and anti-tracking technologies in its interface, so you don't have to work too hard to customize it alongside the improvements that Apple has announced for Safari. For example, it blocks over two thousand web trackers by default and alerts you with Firefox Monitor and Firefox Lockwise when your data protection is breached.Click on the little purple shield icon to the left of the address bar on any site to see what Firefox has blocked, including ad trackers, social media plugins, attempts to fingerprint your device, and more. Firefox will allow some plugins to work if blocking them seriously disrupts the site's functionality. Then you can choose whether to continue using the site or find an alternative. To open a report on how these measures have worked over time, open the Firefox main menu and select Privacy Shield.
If you open Personal Preferences and then Privacy & Security from the Firefox menu, you can choose how to apply advanced tracking protection measures.
There are three different operating modes available - standard, strict and custom. You can also customize the blocking level for specific sites. Enhanced Tracking Protection can also be turned off for sites you trust. All of these features are built right into Firefox, and perhaps this is where Apple got some of the inspiration for Safari. Lots of third party extensions are also available if you want to go even further.
uBlock Origin and Disconnect are available for both Firefox and Chrome and work the same way: after a single click on the browser toolbar, you can see which ads and trackers are being blocked.
In order to keep track of which extensions are allowed in Firefox and for what purpose, select "Add-ons" and then "Extensions" from the program menu. Click on the three dots next to any extension to see the data and features of the browser that it has access to. Now you cannot change this, although you can block the launch in private browser windows. If an extension uses a permission that you don't like, you will have to remove it.
